Hello dharma brothers and sisters. I am new to this forum and happy to find it. I am seriously considering to go forth to the homeless life in Burma. I am from Canada. So far, Pa-Auk forest monastery is my first choice. I got offered help by a Burmese woman and her family to help me over there. They would host me, take me to the monastery's and take care of me in general. This is a amazing opportunity. So my questions goes: When you are a Bhikkhu, is the monastery or the laity's taking car of the possible fee's for the visa extensions or passport renew ? Also, if I need to go out of Burma and back for visa or passport affairs, how it work?And, if I want or need to go back to Canada, will the monastery help me whit that?Finally,If I disrobe in Burma, am-I responsible for my transportation out of the country or if I get any support, not to get stock in that country whit no money?

Thank you in advance for your answers and sorry for the possible mistakes in language and spelling ( I am French Canadian) .May all being be happyMETTA

It seems that if a non-Burmese wishes to ordain at Pa-Auk Monastery he will be required to deposit funds with the monastery's kappiya that will be sufficient to cover both visa extensions and repatriation. But I suggest that you contact the monastery to ascertain what their current policy is:http://www.paaukforestmonastery.org/contact.htm

There is a variety of policies among monasteries in Asia, with some leaving the foreign monk to completely fend for himself and others providing full support with regard to travel costs, visas etc. Pa-Awk Monastery seems to be somewhere in the middle: since they are strict about the prohibition against handling money they arrange for a lay kappiya to deal with all that stuff, but unlike, say, at Wat Pa Nanachat, the ordinand is required to pay the kappiya in advance of his ordination.